PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a light heavyweight MMA rules bout between Kazushi Yamazaki (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Emils Heartman (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Heartman has chosen King of the ring as his entrance music, which hasn't gone down very well with the crowd. The atmosphere really building for this one as we go over to our ring announcer for the fighter introductions!

Yamazaki
vs
Heartman

186 cm
24
215 lbs
5 - 3 - 0

190 cm
20
208 lbs
6 - 4 - 0

BJJ White Belt
Solid boxing
Very quick

BJJ Purple Belt
Counter striker
Granite chin

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the light heavyweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 5 - 3 - 0, fighting out of Tokyo, Kazushi Yamazaki!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 6 - 4 - 0, fighting out of Tokyo, Emils Heartman!
The judges for this bout are Yukihiro Yamamoto, Tatsuya Matsuyama and Yasuomi Hirokawa.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Yamazaki misses with a body shot.
Yamazaki scores with a nice head shot.
A telegraphed right hand from Yamazaki misses the target.
Yamazaki lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but Heartman circles away quickly and effectively.
Yamazaki wings a very wild body shot but it does the job and lands to the midsection.
Yamazaki misses with a wild body shot.
Yamazaki throws a combination but comes up with nothing but fresh air.
A big right from Yamazaki misses.
A head kick misses from Yamazaki.
Yamazaki works his jab well there, keeping his opponent at a distance.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Yamazaki throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Heartman.
Heartman closes the distance and clinches up with Yamazaki, looking for a takedown. Heartman pushes Yamazaki against the cage but Yamazaki circles to the side and manages to break the clinch.
Yamazaki misses with a jab and misses with a cross straight after too.
No joy there for Yamazaki, who threw a few shots but didn't land.
Yamazaki looks to land a combination. Heartman sees it coming but can only parry a couple of the shots.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Yamazaki throws a right and a left that both miss.
Yamazaki ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Heartman moves away.
Yamazaki throws a right and a left that Heartman avoids nicely.
Yamazaki fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Heartman manages to avoid it.
A punch combination from Heartman misses.
Heartman avoids a punch combination nicely.
Yamazaki throws a series of punches but Heartman avoids them all with ease.
Yamazaki is looking to wear down Heartman with body shots, infact he's throwing more body shots than head shots at the moment.
Yamazaki thows a body shot but no joy.
Some wild striking there from Yamazaki.
Yamazaki throws a combination that misses

and Heartman counters with a nice single leg takedown and he's in Yamazaki's guard now.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Heartman pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Yamazaki is keeping the position for now.
Yamazaki managing to control the position.
Heartman trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.
Yamazaki wants to sweep here but Heartman controlling him for the moment.
Heartman trying to control the position from guard on top but Yamazaki is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Heartman postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Yamazaki wants to stand and escape but Heartman is having none of it.

Heartman thinks about going for a leg but decides against it, in order to maintain the position.
Heartman looks gassed!

That's three minutes gone in the round.

It looks like we're going to have a standup here. Neither fighter is doing enough on the ground.
Yamazaki throws a series of punches but Heartman avoids them all with ease.
A combination from Yamazaki does no damage.
Yamazaki falls off balance throwing a combination

and Heartman counters with a shoot takedown. Yamazaki fights it but they end up in guard.
Yamazaki knows he needs to get back to his feet asap. He's simply no match for Heartman on the ground.
Heartman stands and throws Yamazaki's legs to the side, diving into side control.
Heartman in side control, throwing shots but Yamazaki defends.

Heartman wants to work for a kimura but he's foiled early by Yamazaki, who protects the arm well.
Heartman prevents Yamazaki from escaping the position.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Yamazaki is trying to control Heartman's posture but Heartman avoids it.
Heartman postures up a little and throws a couple of hammerfists but they don't connect properly.
Heartman fails to land a wild elbow strike.
Heartman is looking to take a break and control but Yamazaki is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
Yamazaki wants to get back to his feet but Heartman drags him back down.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
Some wild striking there from Yamazaki.
Yamazaki throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Yamazaki throws a right and a left that both miss.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Kazushi Yamazaki dominated that round.
That's the end of the interval. I'm sure that seemed a lot quicker than a minute for our two fighters! Back to the action.

Yamazaki lands a nice shot that snaps Heartman's head back.

Heartman feints and then dives in with a takedown. That was a long way out but the feint bought him enough time to close the distance and complete the takedown. Now we'll play guard for a bit and see who can get the better of that position.
Yamazaki on his back here. We all know that wrestlers don't like being on their back so let's see if Yamazaki tries to get out of the position.
Heartman trying to stand up but can't free himself from Yamazaki's guard.
Yamazaki working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Heartman.
The fighters are starting to get a bit slippery now, which will make submissions a bit more difficult.
Heartman trying to control but Yamazaki is working from the bottom.
Yamazaki seems keen to control rather than go for a submission, at least for now.

Heartman postures up as if he's going to throw some strikes but drops back for an ankle! Yamazaki is in big trouble! He looks ready to tap! But no, he's escaped and dives on top of Heartman, into his guard.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Heartman looking for subs off his back but Yamazaki has passed one foot through into half guard.
Heartman is breathing heavily.

Yamazaki stands, ready to strike. The ref makes him back up and allows Heartman to get to his feet.
Yamazaki swings for the body but Heartman moves out of range.
Yamazaki wings a very wild body shot but it does the job and lands to the midsection.
Yamazaki throws a right and a left that Heartman avoids nicely.
Yamazaki throws a hook to the side of Heartman's head but Heartman sees it coming and ducks under it beautifully.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Yamazaki swings wildly with a couple of big hooks

and Heartman counters with a shoot takedown. Yamazaki fights it but they end up in guard.
Yamazaki keeping moving, preventing Heartman from controlling successfully.
Yamazaki is looking to stand up but Heartman isn't so interested in that idea.
Heartman trying to control but Yamazaki is working from the bottom.
Yamazaki wants to stand and escape but Heartman is having none of it.
Yamazaki is avoiding any damage by keeping wrist control.
Heartman tries to free his leg and advance position but Yamazaki is retaining full guard.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Yamazaki wants to stand up but Heartman is controlling him.

Neither fighter is doing enough for the referee's liking and he's decided to stand them back up.
Yamazaki misses with a head kick.
Yamazaki lands a jab-cross combination.
Yamazaki listening to his corner there, landing a nice uppercut.
Yamazaki tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but Heartman was well out of range. Poor timing from Yamazaki.
Yamazaki scores with a sloppy punch to the body. Not much technique there but it did the business.
Yamazaki misses with a series of wild punches.
Yamazaki swings for the body but Heartman moves out of range.
Yamazaki throws a right and a left that both miss.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Yamazaki misses the shot to the body.
Kazushi Yamazaki is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Yamazaki closes the distance and lands a one-two.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Yamazaki moves into range and throws a combination. A nice jab followed by a hook to the body.
Yamazaki scores with a nice looking left hook and follows it up with an uppercut!
Yamazaki keeps his opponent at a distance with a nice jab.
Some wild striking there from Yamazaki.
Yamazaki throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
A combination from Yamazaki does no damage.
Yamazaki swinging wilding here.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Kazushi Yamazaki dominated that second round.
OK. That's time! The bell goes and we're back to the action. This is the final round!

Heartman avoids a punch combination nicely.
Yamazaki throws a nice looking combination but Heartman bobs and weaves to avoid any damage.
Yamazaki throws a right and a left that Heartman avoids nicely.
Left hook, right uppercut from Yamazaki.
Yamazaki misses with a jab and misses with a cross straight after too.
Yamazaki rushes forward with a series of wild hooks but Heartman moves out of range and avoids them all easily.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Yamazaki fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Heartman manages to avoid it.
Yamazaki throws a right and a left that both miss.
Heartman will need to tighten up his combinations if he doesn't want to gas himself out, swinging at thin air.
No luck for Heartman with that takedown attempt.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Yamazaki swings away but doesn't land with a series of punches.
Yamazaki thumps Heartman with a low kick.
The fighters circle momentarily. Yamazaki darts into range and connects with a nice straight punch.
Yamazaki scores with a sloppy right hand. Heartman should have avoided that one.
Heartman showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Yamazaki.
Yamazaki misses with a wild combination.
Yamazaki throws a left and a right that both miss

and Heartman counters with a takedown into full mount! That could mean trouble for Yamazaki!
Yamazaki is in a horrible position here, under a barrage of strikes, he's managing to avoid any damage.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Yamazaki is working to get back to half guard.
Yamazaki is just holding on here. Heartman manages to take his back.
Will Heartman go for the finish here or will he try and keep control of the position?

Yamazaki preventing the rear naked choke attempt from Heartman.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Heartman trying to control.
Emils Heartman has got the better of the ground game so far.
Yamazaki wants to get back to his feet.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Heartman is looking for the choke from the back position but Yamazaki is controlling his hands well.
Yamazaki tries to escape the position.
Emils Heartman has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Yamazaki is trying to get back to his feet but he's not managed it yet.

Heartman working for the choke.

Yamazaki is staying cool under pressure, defending well against the rear naked choke attempt from his opponent.
Heartman trying to control.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
My god... these two guys really need to pick up the pace or everyone will leave to go get a beer.
Yamazaki trying to control the hands but Heartman breaks the grip.
Yamazaki looking to stop the rear naked choke attempt by controlling the hands.

Heartman is looking for the choke from the back position but Yamazaki is controlling his hands well.

Yamazaki is displaying good submission defense - not really looking in danger of submitting to the rear naked choke at the moment. That could change in an instant of course if Heartman gets his way!
Yamazaki is really stuck here.
Yamazaki is working hard here to advance position.
Kazushi Yamazaki is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.

And that's the end of the fight!
That was a close round. You could make an argument for either fighter but I would give it to Kazushi Yamazaki.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Yamazaki, winning every round. Will the judges agree? They are the ones who matter, even if they are often depressingly incompetent. Over to the ring announcer for the scorecards.

Ladies and gentlemen, after 3 rounds of action, we go to the scorecards for a decision.
Judge Yukihiro Yamamoto scores the fight 30:27
Judge Tatsuya Matsuyama scores the fight 30:27
Judge Yasuomi Hirokawa scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Kazushi Yamazaki!